Flaga's Tale
by ArchdukeWalrus
Summary: Follow Summoner Flaga in his adventures throughout Grand Gaia
1. Chapter 1

"Winner, and promoted to the rank of Khaos, Summoner Flaga!" Announced the ever-present voice of the arena announcer.

At last, I sighed to myself. The badge on my left shoulder glowed brightly, the runes changing from 'Eukleia' to 'Khaos'. I rubbed the trinket lovingly, 'Oh the work it took to get you' I whispered. I looked up to my team, they've stuck by me through thick and thin. No group in my mind could have achieved what we just did.

Magress, the silent knight, nods at me as we meet gazes, or so I would like to think. He never takes off his helm so I would just have to assume. He was, and still is, the leader of the squad I built when I was still a 'Rookie'. Next to him was the equally silent Lira. The half-demon was looking at her blade, though I admit I would too. It really is fascinating how the ethereal flames spew out endlessly from her sword. In front of her was Zephyr. The guardian was twirling his lance around, the exact reason I do not know, but I noticed he always did it after a tough fight, especially when it ends in victory. The hulking mass behind me stirs, signaling the execution of SGX's standby mode. I look up to it endearingly. "Thanks a lot crab, you did well today," I say as I attempted a very awkward pat on the machine's leg closest to me. The beeping noises and the sudden release of steam, I can only guess, is his way of reciprocating the grateful gesture. Looking around, I notice that we are one member short. Our murder mistress had disappeared

The sound of jingling metal forces me to turn around, only to be tackled by a purple blur.

"We did it!" The bladed bundle squeals.

Kikuri's outburst were so frequent that everyone in the team expected them after every victory. Of course, she did those too when we lost, and they were a welcome distraction to the disappointment of losing, but today was not such day. The elation from the victory has not worn off the slightest, and even the most silent of us breathed a nice hearty laugh at our achievement.

"Yeah, we did," I smiled as I gave her a pat on her head. She answers me with a giggle. In this position, you wouldn't even think of her as a murderous, blood-thirsty instrument of death.

"Ahem," an irritated cough breaks the sweet scene.

' _Dammit Lugina, why do you always ruin the mood'_ I thought to myself.

"That was a good match Lugina," I say as I stood up, brushing the dust off my pants.

"Psh, whatever, be glad I was going easy on your sorry ass." He scoffs. Clearly the way he panicked as I destroyed the team he was so proud of unit by unit was an indication of him 'going easy' on me.

I keep those thoughts to myself though.

"Haha…Yeah…Thanks Lugina…Haha," I chuckle awkwardly, not knowing another way to respond to his statement.

"Che, out of the way twerp," grumbles Lugina as he pushes me out of his way, heading to the competitor's locker rooms. Having the same idea, I follow suit, my team following closely behind.

The competitor's locker rooms were on each side of the arena, one for each challenger. It had a few tables containing some snacks and drinks and a few chairs. There was also a screen planted near the door, showing you when the next match was starting and who were going against each other on said match. Overall, it was a pretty bland room.

Or at least, that was what it was when I left for my match.

The faded white walls were now covered in streamers of various colors, the far wall had a bright yellow banner with the words 'congratulations' in a glaring red font, and the screen that showed match timings now flashed my name in the same, hard-to-miss color scheme. I look around, surprised at the sudden transformation. Distracted by the change, I did not notice the poppers aimed directly at me

 _POP!_

"Congratulations Flaga."

"..Congrats…"

"CONGRATULATIONS MY FLAGA!"

I was assaulted with a furious barrage of glitter and paper cuttings. The sources of which were my companions; Karl, Seria, and the Goddess Tilith.

Karl and Tilith greet me with smile, the Goddess's much wider than the blue-haired warrior's. Seria's face, however, can be described as a cross between annoyance and resignation. In other words, her usual expression.

The only one left of my original 5 companions at this point is Kikuri. The others already headed off to the residential barracks and SGX was left in the arena in its standby mode, waiting for the Engineers and other caretakers to come and get it. The kimono-clad girl has long dematerialized her blades and was now staring at awe at the colorful transformation the room has gone through. A competitor's squad was also required to wait in the locker rooms along with their Summoner unless they are too big or too mentally or physically unstable to do so. As such, she was no stranger to how dull the room looked before. Her eyes scanning the room, her gaze stops when she notices the table, laden with food. She let go of her grip on my left arm, stuck there ever since we left for the locker rooms, and broke off into a run, her target obvious – Food.

Kikuri paid no heed to Karl, Seria, Tilith, nor me as she mercilessly attacked the buffet table. With two overflowing plates in hand, she settled on the sofa, a ravenous glint in her eyes. Wait, when did she take out her wings? And why have the blades turned to forks? Peeling my stare at the strange sight, I focus on my friends.

"Hey Tilith, what do you mean by 'my'?" Seria asks, a sour look on her face.

"Tee-hee, didn't you know? Flaga is mine! Ever since that trip to the Eternal Gardens! He confessed his everlasting love to me there! ~" Tilith happily chirps.

"You brought him to the Eternal Gardens?!" Seria shouts, her incredulous look from before increasing in its intensity.

"Oh wow, you really are lucky Flaga," Karl nods his head, his hand on his chin on a contemplative look.

Ignoring Seria and Karl's surprise and awe respectively, I ponder on what Tilith said.

Her statement confused me. What did she mean by that?

'Wait, when did I…Oh Gods…'

Realization dawned on me.

Memories of the time spent in the Eternal Gardens rise to the surface.

My eyes widen.

She must have misunderstood what I said back then!

 _Flashback_

 _Flaga and Tilith set out to investigate a cave in Agni rumored to be a vault containing a relic of great age, said to have been a weapon used by the Gods during their war against each other known as "The Reclaiming". No one knows for sure what the war was about but scholars speculate that it referred to a series of battles fought by every God and Goddess in the pantheon to see who gets the highest seat of power._

 _Tilith was of no help as she was a recently incarnated Goddess and the war happened a few millennia before she was born. Only the 4 fallen Gods and Lucius, the leader of the Gods, were the only ones who knew of or even remember the events during that tumultuous era. Needless to say, scholars and even adventurers did not dare ask or at the very least approach said beings just for this piece of information._

 _As the pair explored the cave and all the mysterious runes that patterned its walls, a horrific roar echoed throughout the cave, originating from deep within._

 _A Duelmex had apparently made this cave its home._

 _With fierce eyes, it scanned the cave for the intruders. Spotting them, it started spinning the enormous chakram on its back. Meaning only one thing, it was going to attack_

 _With a piercing bellow, numerous spell circles appear, their glow intensifying as the creature charged up its attack._

" _Shit! Tilith, get down!" Flaga shouted, panic rising in his voice._

" _Eh?!" Tilith, caught unaware and unable to react, froze at the sight of the incoming attack._

" _Damn it all!" With a burst of speed aided by magic, Flaga flew to TIlith's side and pushed her down. His body shielding hers from the coming onslaught._

 _With another ear-piercing roar, the creature released its attack. Beams of burning energy tore through the air, peppering the cave's walls with multiple craters._

 _The Duelmex's attack only lasted a few seconds but the devastation it caused was massive. The runes the pair were investigating had all been annihilated and loose rocks fell from the cave's roof._

 _Seemingly satisfied with the destruction it caused, the Duelmex spread its wings, the wind dislodging even more loose debris from the roof, and flew out of the cave, presumably on its way to find another home._

 _With the dying gusts of wind signaling the dragon's departure, Tilith opened her eyes and peeked from Flaga's shoulders._

" _Hey! It's gone! Its fine now Flaga," she says as she moved to stand up._

 _Only to find out she couldn't._

 _Flaga's limp body was preventing her from doing so_

" _Flaga? Hey. Hey answer me! Flaga!" Tilith panics as she lifted him off herself, the smell of burnt flesh flooding her nostrils. Eyes widening, she looks to her companion. His travelling cloak was in tatters and the exposed skin on his back was blackened, burnt by the Duelmex's barrage. His right leg was also bent at an unnatural angle. His breathing was slow, signifying his state of unconsciousness._

" _Oh no. Flaga! Flaga please wake up! Flaga!" Tilith cried as she did her best to lay Flaga in a safe position. It was proving to be a hard chore, as most of his body was injured and she did not know enough about first aid or even the human physiology to even attempt to place Flaga's body in a more comfortable position. She did not even dare to reset the broken leg, fearing her inexperience might injure him any further._

 _She clutched her head, looking down on the broken adventurer's body. "What do I do…what do I do…what do I do…" She utters. Closing her eyes and letting tears fall, she wept for good while. "I need to heal his body quickly, but this much damage won't be enough for my magic alone," Tilith says, still sobbing. "I need to bring him somewhere safe."_

 _Then a thought came to her, an image of such place forming in her mind. "The Eternal Gardens!" Her eyes widening once more. "But, it's forbidden for humans to go there, much less a Goddess bringing one in," she states, a forlorn look on her face. Looking at her battered companion once more, her eyes hardened, a look of determination now on her face. "Flaga isn't just a human, he's my companion! He needs this!"_

 _Tilith stands up and dusts herself off, an incantation akin to a song flowing from her divine lips summons a spell circle that shrouds both her and the fallen summoner. With the last verse of her song done, she points to the sky and exclaims, "_ _ **HORTIS AETERNAM!"**_

 _And with a beam of light, Tilith and Flaga disappeared in a flash of light, headed to where Tilith hopes to be the best chance of saving her beloved companion._


	2. Chapter 2

_The Eternal Gardens were a place for healing and recuperation for all divine beings who were under Lucius' rule. Pools of blessed water formed since time immemorial healed cuts, mended broken bones, and even in the most extreme cases, reformed missing limbs. The fauna growing there were used for elixirs that rejuvenated mana or were made into poisons that made even the largest of beings, immortal or not, immobile for days._

 _The serene atmosphere of the Gardens were disturbed by the sudden appearance of Tilith in a flash of light. The residents, namely the immortals currently on duty guarding the place, were used to her unusual entries. However, what made them put up their guard was the slumped form of someone beside her. Tilith turned her attention to them and said, "I'll take full responsibility for bringing him here, just please, help me get him to one of the healing pools!"_

 _The guards looked to each other, not one of them willing to deny an order from the direct disciple of Lucius. They did a once-over of the stranger, noticing grievous wounds marring his young form. They marched forwards and carried the injured Flaga over, taking extra care in bringing him in into one of the pools, in fear of worsening his already dire injuries. After lowering him into one of the pools, they left, leaving Tilith alone in one of the garden's clearings._

 _Only after she was sure that the guards have disappeared did the goddess allow herself to crumple to her knees. Fresh tears fell freelyl, soaking the grass and ground beneath her. "Please Flaga, please come back," Tilith sobs. As if by her command, the pool started to glow. Wracked by her sobbing, Tilith did not notice it at first, not until a melody, similar to her spellcasting from earlier, was heard. The distraught goddess looked towards the pool where Flaga lay. By this point, the pool was bubbling like it was boiling. Already knowing how the pools worked, having been in them a number of times before, Tilith waited, already worried for her partner. Was the human body too weak to handle the waters of the Gardens? Were the waters not enough to cure his life-threatening injuries? Did she make it in time to save Flaga? All sorts of dire questions ran through Tilith's mind. Her worries were unfounded, however, when Flaga burst from the healing pool, his injuries gone and replaced with unmarred flesh, sputtering and cursing out a storm from being submerged underwater without warning._

 _Flaga pulled his wet hair back and looked around. The surrounding vegetation looked strange to him and even more so the currently glowing pool he was submerged in. Sensing a presence to his right, Flaga turned and saw his goddess companion Tilith kneeling before the edge of the pool. Her eyes looked swollen and marred from her previous crying. She was using her sleeve to wipe off the remnants of her tears just as Flaga was wading towards her, sopping wet._

 _"Tilith? Where are we? Where's the Duelmex?" Asked Flaga as he approached his friend while trying to wring his soaked clothes._

 _Standing up and brushing herself off, Tilith faced up to reply to her water-logged companion, only to laugh at his hilariously pitiful image._

 _"Here, let me help you with that._ _ **Absque Aqua."**_ _With a flick of Tilith's wrist, the water from Flaga's clothes separated from the cloths and returned back to the pool._

 _"We're in the Eternal Gardens Flaga. I brought you here. The last attack that beast did in the cave did a number on you and I had no choice but to bring you here to heal your wounds. Your back was in such a bad state, I didn't know if you were going to survive."_

 _Upon hearing the words 'Eternal Gardens', Flaga's face paled. He knew of the legends and stories about the place exclusive to only Gods and their wards. For him to actually be in it was absolutely shocking. That and going into such sacred grounds without an invitation from the Gods themselves was practically asking for an immediate death sentence. He briefly wondered if dying of wounds from the Duelmex' attack was better compared to being vaporized by Lucius or some other God._

 _Noticing his sudden change in demeanor, Tilith giggled._

 _"Don't worry, I will be bearing the full brunt of the punishment for bringing you here, you don't have to worry about anything."_

 _Flaga's eyes widened, "I can't let you do that Tilith! I was the one injured in the first place, I should be the one being punished for forcing you to bring me here!"_

 _"Like I said, its fine Flaga. I don't think Lord Lucius will mind since you ARE his chosen after all. Besides, if it's for you then…" Tilith placated Flaga before trailing off._

 _"I'm sorry Tilith what was that?" Flaga inquired. It was odd seeing the extremely outspoken goddess mumble._

 _"Nothing! It's nothing haha…Oh look, your clothes are all banged up, let me fix that for you!_ _ **Boni fiamus."**_ _Tilith snapped her fingers and Flaga's ruined clothes shone, and after the glow died down, returned to their unmarred state._

 _Flaga smoothed over his newly-repaired clothes, nodding a thanks to his companion. Now that his clothes were as good as new and his life-endangering injuries were healed, the mission only minutes ago seemed so surreal._

 _"Hey Tilith, we were in a cave with that Duelmex right?" Flaga asked, his voice soft and low._

 _"We were. What's the matter? Are you feeling alright? Are you getting delirious? Dizzy?" Tilith buzzed around him, nervousness filling her. Is this a side effect of the pool? Is he suffering memory loss?_

 _Flaga held back a laugh. "Hey, hey, don't worry, I'm just confirming. With my clothes fixed, my injuries healed, and me being here in the Gardens with you, everything that happened in that cave seemed unreal. In fact, without your word to go on about my injuries, I wouldn't even believe that they were that bad."_

 _"They were really, really bad Flaga! You were losing a lot of blood and your skin was so burned and you were unconscious and…and…" Tilith vigorously tugged at Flaga's sleeve, feeling herself tearing up again. Remembering her partner's severely injured state was too much for the emotional goddess._

 _"Woah, woah relax, I believe you Tilith," Flaga spoke calmly, trying to placate the already crying immortal, "I'm just glad we got out of there alive and well."_

 _"You mean it?" Asked the goddess, once again wiping her eyes with her tear-soaked sleeves._

 _"Yes, I do. Thank you Tilith, I owe you my life."_

 _"It was nothing. I know you'd do the same for me if I was injured like that." Tilith cheerfully supplied._

 _Flaga reached to scratch the back of his head, "I wouldn't be so sure about that. I don't know any place that instantly heals wounds as fast as these pools do."_

 _The goddess' smile widened. Overjoyed by his confirmation of immediate care if she be injured. Of course, being a goddess, she was impervious to almost all injuries harmful or fatal to humans like her companion, but it was encouraging to know that the thought and intent was there._

 _"That's no problem Flaga, if it ever comes to that, I could just teach you the spell to bring me here to the Gardens."_

 _Flaga's eyes widened. "No no no no no, Tilith, no. You can't do that," said the summoner, his hands going straight to Tilith's shoulders, grabbing tight._

 _"I don't see why not, it's a fairly simple spell, and I don't think Lord Lucius will mind his chosen summoner coming here ever so often." Said Tilith, oblivious to mortal stories about the pools and the times when one of their kin was sent there, and never to return. And if they did, they would be terribly, terribly, terribly deformed. Flaga shuddered at the thought of what he might look like once the pair returned to his world. He only hoped he still had limbs to hold back Seria whenever she was in moments where she turned incredibly violent towards Karl, Lugina, and anyone who has the misfortune of crossing her path that day._

 _"Look, Tilith, I appreciate the thought, really, I do, but I don't think Lord Lucius would like it very much if I came here of my own accord."_

 _"Why? You ARE his chosen one, you should be able to use these pools. Perks that come with being the 'chosen one', you know?" Tilith supplied cheerily._

 _Flaga banished the thought of convincing the cheery Goddess. There is absolutely no way of getting through to her at this point. Not when her partner was just saved from certain death, by her no less. Instead, Flaga sighed, and played around with the idea that Lord Lucius was indeed willing to teach him the spell to travel to the Gardens anytime he wanted. "Well, that would make it extremely convenient," he thought to himself._

 _"Thank you Tilith, really, you saved me back there." Flaga gushed, expressing his gratitude to the Goddess._

 _Tilith had no reaction but her brilliant smile. Her partner should know by now what lengths she would go through to assist him in his journey. In fact, even without Lucius' blessing or permission, she would still do all she can to help her companion. That was how much she valued Flaga's companionship and camaraderie._

 _Said companion was all smiles too, infected by her contagious grin. He gazed at the greenery around him, the foreign fauna intriguing him. "Thank you for saving me, and bringing me to this wonderful place. I'm glad I'm travelling with you. I'm scared to think what would have happened to me if you weren't there but I know one thing for sure, I love your company." Flaga finishes, looking to the Goddess to his right._

 _Tilith, upon hearing affection in his tone, looked up at him, pink dusting her cheeks. "You really mean that?" She asks. "Of course!" Responds Flaga without missing a beat. His quick and steady response made his companion turn redder. "I love your company too Flaga," muttered the Goddess, suddenly unable to look at her friend eye to eye._

 _Flashback End_

"Isn't that the sweetest confession ever?" chirped Tilith, holding her reddened cheeks and remembering the memory of the time spent together at the Gardens with me.

All three of us, Karl, Seria, and I, paled, our faces showed the same train of thought;

'That wasn't really a confession, Tilith.'

The first to break the uncomfortable silence was Seria. "That wasn't a confession you stupid Goddess! That was just a friend saying a really long and unnecessary 'thank you'!" Growled the warrior clad in red, punctuating her statement with a glare aimed at me. Why are you glaring at me Seria? I thought we were on the same side?

Seria huffed, offended by Seria's insinuation. "It was too! It was full of affection and romantic feelings!" Retorted the Goddess.

"You're not even human! You don't have the slightest idea what romantic feelings are!" Shot back Seria.

"Of course I don't! But how do you explain why my chest felt warm when Flaga told me he loved my company huh?" Tilith replied, her tone rose as the argument got progressively worse.

Meanwhile, Karl and I took steps back, not willing to step in and placate the two femme fatales. We valued our lives too highly to die from an emotionally charged catfight.

"Ugh, it wasn't a confession Tilith! End of story!"

"It was too!"

"It was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

Both of them were now inches away from each other's face. Both extremely flustered and fully prepared to tear off the other. Verbally or physically, I had no intention of knowing, but I was not willing to find out. Before I could step in, however, Seria said something that made their disagreement escalate to a whole new dimension.

"Fine! If you consider what this dunce Flaga said a confession, then he confessed to me too!" Seria declared, crossing her arms over her chest and smirking victoriously down the much shorter Tilith.

Oh Gods Seria, not you too.

The look of shock splayed across Tilith's face and Karl's grinning awe had me cornered. "I guess I owe an explanation?" I offered meekly.

"Yes you do!/YES YOU DO!" Declared and screeched by Karl and Tilith respectively.

I let out a long sigh.

Guys, please, I just came here to celebrate my win.


End file.
